TUESDAY'S WORD is bunt. “He hit a bunt and the ball rolled slowly along the ground while he ran quickly to first base.” (Source: www.englishclub.com)

MONDAY’S WORD was emolument. It means the wages or perquisites arising from office, employment, or labor; gain, compensation. “And they are not obliged to follow those occupations, if they prefer leisure to emolument.” — John Stuart Mill, On Liberty (Source: Dictionary.com)

The 40-year reunion of the Bassett High School Class of 1973 will be held on Saturday, Sept. 21, at the Quality Inn-Dutch Inn in Collinsville. Some of the details have been finalized, but there still are some things to iron out. Letters will be sent to class members later with full information. All local residents are asked to contact Dana Wade at 732-4835 to update addresses and ask any questions.

Betty Smith, who leads TOPS Chapter 0218, called the Stroller with news she was excited about. TOPS stands for Take Off Pounds Sensibly. At its Jan. 29 gathering, the chapter had a “no-gain meeting,” its first in many years. That means that during the weigh-in, all of the 21 members either weighed the same or had lost weight since the last weigh-in. Normally during the weigh-ins, it turns out that one or two people have gained a bit. “This was a happy time for them,” she said. The group meets at 10 a.m. Tuesdays at Chatham Heights Baptist Church.

TOPS chapters around the area help people lose weight together. Check today’s Calendar for meetings in Ridgeway (5:30 p.m.), Fieldale ( 5:15 p.m.) and Stanleytown (9:30 a.m.) as well as the 10 a.m. meeting in Chatham Heights. Overeaters Anonymous also meets today at 6 p.m. in Martinsville.

Grace Baptist Church will have a free community meal at 6:30 p.m. today. The church is located across 220 from Drewry Mason Elementary School.

Some trivia to mark Black History Month: Jackie Robinson was the first black major league baseball player. On April 15, 1947, Robinson made his debut before a crowd of 26,623 spectators at Ebbets Field, including more than 14,000 black patrons, according to www.timelines.com. As a downside, his involvement with major league baseball led to the death of the Negro Baseball League, which had started in 1920. The Negro Baseball League is the subject of Piedmont Arts’ latest exhibit, “We Are The Ship” by Kadir Nelson.

Mike Wiley will give the presentation “A Game Apart: Mike Wiley as Jackie Robinson” at 7 p.m. Monday at Piedmont Arts. Wiley will talk about the struggles faced by Robinson and other black athletes during segregation. Admission costs $15 for adults and $10 for students.

Now for a chuckle from Nell Lovell:

A Sunday school teacher was discussing the Ten Commandments with her 5- and 6-year-olds.

After explaining the commandment to “Honor thy father and thy mother,” she asked, “Is there a commandment that teaches us how to treat our brothers and sisters?”

Without missing a beat, one little boy answered, “Thou shall not kill.”

From a Ridgeway reader:

A census-taker came to a house and knocked on the door. A woman answered. He asked, “How many youngens you got, and what are their ages?”

“Well, let’s see, she said, “We have Lonnie and Johnnie and they are 12; then there’s Timmy and Jimmy. They are 10.”

“Hold on,” said the census-taker, “you mean to tell me you got twins every time?” She said, “Lord, no. There were hundreds of times we got nothing.”